Scripture standout: Ephesians 4: "16 He makes the whole body grow and build itself up in love. Under the control of Christ, each part of the body does its work. It supports the other parts. In that way, the body is joined and held together."
His Deed/The Day: Today I have to go to the dentist for a three-hour appointment. My goodness, if he doesn't jack me down to a laid, laid, laid back way with the gas, I'm going to freak. I don't like the dentist at all. Nothing about it appeals — the visual, the sounds, the smell, the taste. It is an epic sensory fail.
Today's deed is going to express thanks and kudos to someone who threw a very interesting New Year's Day gathering yesterday. In anyone else's book, it would have been a disaster. But not to her, and what a curiously entertaining event unfolded!
Below is today's Forward Day by Day devotional. I believe this wholeheartedly! You give what you have, and God uses you in big ways:
John 6:1-14. There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are they among so many people?
A crowd followed Jesus up a mountain. Jesus asked his disciples where they could buy food for them all. One disciple thought they didn’t have enough money. Then they noticed a boy with five barley loaves and two fish. Jesus told the crowd to sit down. He took the bread and the fish, gave thanks to God, and the food multiplied. There was more than enough for everyone.
Many readers focus on Jesus’ miraculous powers in this story. But what about that boy? He could have hidden his food under his clothes or simply figured that it wasn’t enough. Instead, he offered what he had.
After the earthquake in Haiti, a small group of children in a Sunday School class wanted to raise money for relief. They held a bake sale on a Sunday morning and challenged other classes to do the same. The next group had another bake sale and raised even more money. Another class sold bracelets. Ideas and proceeds kept multiplying so that the whole congregation was involved. It all started with that first small group.
It’s easy to think that what we have to give is small and insignificant. That boy offered what he had. When we offer what we have, God multiplies our gifts. What might be your small offering today?
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